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Yankees Injury Notes: Severino, Andujar, Sanchez, Stanton, Tulo, Hicks

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Injuries are the story thus far for the Yankees, whose sluggish start is explained in no small part by a dizzying barrage of maladies. One of those has proven particularly confounding, as young starter Luis Severino came down with a lat strain while rehabbing a shoulder injury. As James Wagner of the New York Times reports, the investigation into the origins of Severino’s health problems has become a tale of its own. At this point, the team isn’t sure how that problem popped up; GM Brian Cashman says it wasn’t detected in the imaging that identified the initial shoulder problem.

In any event, there’s still five weeks to go until Severino can potentially start to throw once again. While he and the team wait for that important development, they’ll hope to welcome back a few other players. The latest …

  • The Yanks are at least open to considering utilizing Miguel Andujar as something other than a third baseman, manager Aaron Boone indicated to reporters including Wagner (Twitter link). Andujar’s shoulder injury hasn’t limited him much with the bat, but has made throwing difficult. Even if he’s able to avoid a surgical procedure, then, a return to the hot corner may be difficult. In that event, it’s possible he’d be utilized in the DH slot or perhaps even at first. Those possibilities aren’t yet being discussed in earnest, with Boone saying the club will wait to see how Andujar’s throwing progresses, but it now seems there are some new approaches on the table.
  • Backstop Gary Sanchez is still on track for a quick return to the active roster, MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch writes. In fact, with his calf injury evidently progressing well, he may be back when first eligible on Sunday. That’d be a nice boost for the lineup; the 26-year-old catcher had been back to his slugging ways before incurring the injury.
  • Outfielder Giancarlo Stanton also seems to be showing signs of nearing a return from his biceps injury, though he’s certainly still further off. Stanton has taken cuts off a pitching machine, as Hoch tweeted yesterday, though it’s still a bit uncertain when he’ll be fully ready for activation. It seems possible, but not certain, that Stanton could return before the club wraps up a lengthy West Coast road trip on May 9th.
  • Several other players are also progressing, but on less-certain timelines. Shortstop Troy Tulowitzki is also working back from a calf strain that is a bit more significant than Sanchez’s. (Via Hoch; Twitter link.) He’s participating in baseball activities and says he’s feeling good, but there’s still no indication when he’ll be ready. Outfielder Aaron Hicks is also engaged in a variety of baseball functions but hasn’t yet taken batting practice to test out his ailing back. He’s hoping to do so this week, Wagner tweets, which would perhaps clear the way for a rehab assignment.

Greg Bird Out At Least A Month; Yankees Select Mike Ford

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4:15pm: Bird will miss “at least” a month of action, manager Aaron Boone told reporters (Twitter link via Newsday’s Erik Boland).

9:47am: The Yankees have selected the contract of first baseman Mike Ford, per a club announcement. Fellow first baseman Greg Bird is heading to the injured list with a left plantar fascia tear, with a 40-man roster spot created by shifting outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury to the 60-day IL. Jimmy O’Brien of Talkin’ Yanks had the news on Ford’s promotion this morning (Twitter link).

It’s more tough news for Bird, who was already scuffling in the batter’s box. The 26-year-old has dealt with a litany of injuries already in his career. Now, he has a potentially tricky new malady to overcome. Details on his anticipated timeline aren’t yet clear, but Bird will surely require a lengthy stretch on the IL. Plantar fascia tears can require up to a month in a walking boot even before the real rehab work starts.

Ford is also a 26-year-old, left-handed-hitting first bagger. When Bird debuted with the Yanks in 2015, though, Ford was working out the kinks at the High-A level.

There have been some ups and downs since, with both power and patience on display when he’s going good. Across 532 upper-minors plate appearances in 2017, Ford posted a .270/.404/.471 slash with twenty home runs and a snazzy mix of 94 walks and 72 strikeouts. Last year, the Princeton product sagged to a .760 OPS at the highest level of the minors.

Ford has been firmly on the risk so far in 2019. An afterthought in spring camp, he has burst out of the gates back at Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. Through 45 trips to the dish, Ford carries a .410/.467/.897 batting line with five long balls and four walks to go with seven strikeouts.

Gonzalez Awaiting Opportunity As Opt-Out Looms

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  • Veteran lefty Gio Gonzalez is awaiting an opportunity in the Major Leagues with the Yankees as an opt-out clause in his minor league contract looms, Mark W. Sanchez of the New York Post writes. The Yankees, according to Gonzalez, were the only club to even make him an offer this winter and didn’t do so until midway through Spring Training after an injury to Luis Severino. The southpaw had a brutal first start in Triple-A but has bounced back with a pair of strong outings, yielding just two runs through 11 innings with an 18-to-3 K/BB ratio. Gonzalez didn’t shy away from voicing his displeasure with the manner in which the offseason unfolded but also said he doesn’t feel he needs to pitch as though he has a point to prove: “No. I have nothing left to prove to people. [I] throw 180 innings, do your thing, I’m durable, doing it for the last 10 years. If I still have to prove a point, that’s embarrassing in this sport.”

Yankees Notes: Paxton, Hicks

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  • Big-ticket offseason pickup James Paxton has struggled so far as a member of the Yankees, which led the left-hander to talk with his sports psychologist, Sweeny Murti of WFAN tweets. The former Mariner revealed he had been putting too much pressure on himself to succeed with his new team, though he now believes he’s on the right track. Paxton also found out from Yankees special advisor Carlos Beltran that he was tipping his curveball grip in his most recent start, an ugly showing in Houston on April 10. He’ll attempt to incorporate Beltran’s advice against Boston on Tuesday.
  • Speaking Sunday with reporters, including Bryan Hoch of MLB.com and Erik Boland of Newsday, Yankees center fielder Aaron Hicks said he feels “great” and could take on-field batting practice in the next week. There’s still no timetable for his return, though. Hicks has been dealing with a lower back issue since early March, shortly after the Yankees inked him to a seven-year, $70MM contract extension. Although his absence has deprived the Yankees of one of the game’s preeminent center fielders, battle-tested reserve Brett Gardner has delivered passable offensive production (90 wRC+ in 61 plate appearances) in his stead.

Poll: Slow-Starting Playoff Contenders

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The Red Sox, Yankees, Cubs and Rockies were among the majors’ most successful clubs in 2018, when the quartet comprised 40 percent of the league’s playoff bracket. No one was better than the Red Sox, who rolled to 108 regular-season wins before steamrolling the Yankees, Astros and Dodgers in the postseason en route to their latest World Series title. The Yankees, despite their loss to archrival Boston, enjoyed a more-than-respectable year in which they notched 100 victories. And Colorado knocked out Chicago in the National League wild-card game, a battle of two 90-plus-win teams, before succumbing to Milwaukee in the divisional round.

Given the excellence those clubs displayed last year, it would have been fair to expect each of them to earn playoff berths again in 2019. Instead, while we’re just a couple weeks into the season, all of those teams have tripped out of the starting block, having combined for 19 wins in 58 games. They’re the only members of last year’s playoff field that are under .500 at this point.

Boston, whose roster is almost the same as its title-winning version (sans relievers Craig Kimbrel and Joe Kelly), dropped a game to the lowly Orioles on Saturday. Fifteen contests into the season, the Red Sox have already lost 10 times – something they didn’t do until Game 35 a year ago. Neither their all-world offense nor their high-end pitching staff from 2018 have come close to replicating those performances thus far, and questions have swirled around ace Chris Sale. Signed to a five-year, $145MM extension before the season, Sale’s velocity – which began dropping amid an injury-limited 2018 – has continued to plummet. Unsurprisingly, the 30-year-old’s effectiveness has waned as his fastball has lost power. Not only has Sale allowed an earned run per inning across 13 frames, but one of baseball’s all-time strikeout artists has fanned just eight batters.

Maybe Sale is battling a physical issue, but the Yankees are dealing with plenty of their own. Eleven of their players, including standouts Luis Severino, Giancarlo Stanton, Gary Sanchez, Didi Gregorius, Miguel Andujar, Aaron Hicks and Dellin Betances are on the IL. The majority of that group won’t be back in the near future – or perhaps until 2020 in the case of Andujar – while Severino, Gregorius, Hicks and Betances haven’t suited up yet this year. With so many integral contributors unavailable, the Yankees have started 6-8. That would be less concerning if not for their inability to capitalize on an easy early season schedule. The Yankees have played 11 games against the Orioles, Tigers and White Sox, all of whom are regarded as bottom feeders, and only won six of those matchups. The AL East rival Rays (11-4) have taken advantage, evidenced by their 4.5-game lead on New York and their six-game edge over Boston.

Over in the NL, the Cubs – on the heels of a widely panned offseason – have sputtered to a 5-9 showing and a four-game deficit in the Central, which could be one of the majors’ most competitive divisions. Although cornerstone hitters Kris Bryant, Javier Baez, Anthony Rizzo and Kyle Schwarber haven’t resembled their best selves, the Cubs’ offense has still done well statistically. Their pitching has been abysmal, on the other hand. Yu Darvish, who’s in Year 2 of a huge contract, continues to perform nothing like the pitcher he was pre-Chicago, while the bullpen the Cubs did little to bolster over the winter has looked predictably vulnerable.

Speaking of vulnerable, the Rockies have christened their season with the majors’ worst record (3-12) and its last-ranked run differential (minus-36). If the Rockies are going to overcome their horrific start to pick up their third straight playoff appearance, they’ll need far more from their position players. Their hitters have put together a woeful 37 wRC+ and minus-2.6 fWAR, both of which easily rank last in the game. Injuries have played a part, as regulars David Dahl, Daniel Murphy and Ryan McMahon are all on the IL. Meanwhile, the Rockies’ primary offensive catalysts – Nolan Arenado, Trevor Story and Charlie Blackmon – have all been duds so far. Those three won’t stay down forever, though, and Colorado’s starting staff also has the talent to rebound from its early season mediocrity. But the Rockies can’t afford to let this skid continue to fester, especially considering they’re stuck in a division with the perennial champion Dodgers. Realistically, it’s wild card or bust for the Rockies, but rallying to steal one of those two spots in a crowded NL won’t be easy.

While it would be unwise to panic on April 13, there are more reasons for concern than expected in all of these teams’ cases. Then again, the same was said last year about the Dodgers, who began 16-26 on their way to 92 wins and another pennant. The Red Sox, Yankees, Cubs and Rockies can take solace in that, perhaps, but do you believe any of them are already in serious trouble?

(poll link for app users)

Yankees Activate C.C. Sabathia From Injured List

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The Yankees have activated southpaw C.C. Sabathia from the injured list, as per a club press release.  Left-hander Stephen Tarpley was optioned to Triple-A last night to create a 25-man roster spot for Sabathia, who is set to start today’s game against the White Sox.

Sabathia underwent both a minor knee surgery and an angioplasty during the offseason, leading the Yankees to make the IL placement in order to give the 38-year-old time to properly ramp up his preparation.  He technically began the season on the active roster, in order to get a five-game suspension out of the way (Sabathia was issued the suspension for hitting Jesus Sucre with a pitch in a game late last year) before he hit the IL on April 3.

Now, Sabathia is ready to begin what will be his 19th and final Major League season.  The veteran re-signed with New York on a one-year, $8MM deal in early November, as there was never much doubt that Sabathia would don the pinstripes one more time.  Though the Yankees will monitor Sabathia’s innings and usage as a nod to his age and injury history, he has continued to provide solid results in the rotation.  Sabathia has a 3.76 ERA, 7.7 K/9 rate, and 2.48 K/BB rate over 481 1/3 innings since the start of the 2016 season.

Sabathia’s return patches at least one hole in the Yankees’ injury-riddled roster, though the team still has a whopping 11 players on the injured list.  Rotation-wise, Sabathia joins Masahiro Tanaka, James Paxton, J.A. Happ in the starting five, while Domingo German continues to fill in for the sidelined Luis Severino.

Dellin Betances Diagnosed With Bone Spur In Shoulder

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Yankees reliever Dellin Betances is dealing with a bone spur in his right shoulder, GM Brian Cashman announced tonight to reporters including Kristie Ackert of the New York Daily News (via Twitter). He’ll need further treatment and rest, pushing back his anticipated timeline to return to the active roster.

The best guess at present is that Betances will need at least three weeks of rest. If things go well from that point, he could be ready for the big leagues in approximately six or seven weeks. While the news isn’t as bad as it could’ve been, the Yanks were surely hoping that Betances would be nearing a return at this point rather than re-starting the process.

While the Yanks can’t hope for Betances to re-join the pen until June, they’ll still have ample time to evaluate their roster needs in advance of the trade deadline. In the meantime, they’ll simply have to go without a pitcher who has been among the game’s most consistently dominant relievers for some time now. Fortunately, this ballclub carries a stacked relief unit with or without Betances.

Thus far, the Yankees’ season has been marred completely by a barrage of injuries. It’s not particularly surprising to see a few hurlers dealing with issues, and nobody is shocked to find Troy Tulowitzki and Jacoby Ellsbury on the shelf. But the Yankees’ injured list now borders on the absurd, with a run of incredibly talented players on the shelf — many with uncertain timelines for a return.

It’s never good to see players out of action, but the situation creates an undeniably fascinating dynamic. With the Red Sox limping out of the gates and the Rays starting hot, it now seems to be a true three-way race — with all the competitors also readying to jockey for position against other possible Wild Card clubs. We’re barely two weeks into the season, but the American League already looks quite a bit less top heavy than it appeared on paper.

Dellin Betances Slated To Receive MRI

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Rehabbing Yankees reliever Dellin Betances is not progressing on quite the timeline that might have been hoped. Manager Aaron Boone said today that a recent simulated game “didn’t go great,” as MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch was among those to tweet. Betances is now heading back to New York to undergo an MRI on his shoulder.

Previously diagnosed with an impingement after experiencing a worrying spring velocity drop, Betances had been hoping to rest a bit and then ramp right back up. It seems now that the down time did not fully resolve the issues in the joint, which makes for no shortage of uncertainty for both player and team.

The Yankees have plenty of options to fill in for Betances and the resources to add more relievers if need be. But the club is already dealing with multiple injuries in other areas of the roster. At this stage of the season, at least, it can’t hope to find a reliever of Betances’s quality for anything approaching a reasonable price.

Things are even more concerning for Betances himself, as the big righty is playing out his final season of arbitration eligibility. High velocity and durability have been among his two biggest calling cards over a thus-far stellar career. Now, the 31-year-old will need to get healthy and regain the arm speed that has allowed him to post a 2.36 ERA with 14.6 K/9 over 381 total MLB innings.. If and when he manages that, there’ll still be some newfound uncertainty surrounding his health outlook.

Yankees Place Gary Sanchez On Injured List

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The Yankees announced Friday that they’ve placed catcher Gary Sanchez on the 10-day injured list, retroactive to April 11, due to a left calf strain. Fellow backstop Kyle Higashioka has been recalled from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in his place.

Sanchez becomes the 12th Yankees player to hit the injured list on the young season, joining key contributors Luis Severino, Dellin Betances, Aaron Hicks, Miguel Andujar and Giancarlo Stanton, among others. He’ll be out for at least the next nine days, given that the move is retroactive by one day, which is no small blow to the Yankees’ lineup given the excellent start Sanchez has enjoyed. To this point, he’s slashed .268/.333/.732 with six big flies through just 45 trips to the plate.

Higashioka, who’ll turn 29 during Sanchez’s absence, will team with Austin Romine to comprise the Yankees’ catching tandem while Sanchez is on the shelf. He’s seen sparse action at the MLB level with the Yankees over the past two seasons, hitting a combined .133/.212/.256 in 99 plate appearances.

Yankees Notes: Rotation, Keuchel, Andujar, Hicks, Stanton

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Though the Yankees’ rotation was dealt a substantial blow yesterday with the news that Luis Severino would be shut down entirely for another six weeks, the organization isn’t hitting the panic button and making a sudden push for lingering free-agent Dallas Keuchel, SNY’s John Harper reports. New York general manager Brian Cashman would prefer to “exhaust all of the alternatives” before pursuing Keuchel unless the former Cy Young winner’s price tag drops even further. SNY’s Andy Martino tweets a similar sentiment, suggesting there’s no interest in Keuchel at this time.

The Yankees will be getting some help for a beleaguered rotation this weekend, however, as manager Aaron Boone revealed to reporters Wednesday that CC Sabathia will be activated from the injured list and make his 2019 debut on Saturday (Twitter link via Newsday’s Erik Boland). The Yanks also have Gio Gonzalez tuning up in Triple-A, and given that the lefty has an April 20 opt-out in his minor league contract, it seems likely that he’ll get a look sooner rather than later.

More out of the Bronx…

  • Third baseman Miguel Andujar made 25 throws from 60 feet this week and has been cleared to swing a bat on Friday, the team told the media today (Twitter link via George A. King III of the New Pork). It’s not yet clear if the young slugger will be able to avoid surgery to repair the small tear in his right shoulder’s labrum, though both he and the Yankees are hopeful that he can avoid going under the knife. In his absence, DJ LeMahieu has been hitting well while manning the hot corner, though injuries to both Andujar and Troy Tulowitzki have tested the Yankees’ infield depth.
  • Center fielder Aaron Hicks has begun to hit soft-toss in addition to his throwing regimen, tweets James Wagner of the New York Times. He’s also been running the bases recently and is optimistic that he’ll be able to take on-field batting practice in the near future. Meanwhile, Giancarlo Stanton has begun to swing a bat as he works his way toward a return. Both players figure to need to minor league rehab assignments before they’re able to suit up to return to the Yankees, but it seems that each is proceeding free of any setbacks at present.
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